It’s Saturday and that means it is time to reflect on the week and celebrate things both big and small. Join our community and celebrate this week by linking up or just stopping by the host Ruth Ayres’ blog to read others’ celebrations.
Lifestyle Challenge
Today I start my third round of the Whole Life Challenge. This challenge asks participants to score themselves daily on 7 different health habits: nutrition, drinking water, exercise, stretching, sleep, daily reflection, and a weekly lifestyle habit. I loved the challenge the first time and it really helped me to change the way I was eating and to think about all my habits. I did not do as well the second time around. But I still loved the fact that I was actively thinking about my health habits every day. This time around, I am doing a more challenging level for nutrition. I will need to cut out more things, but I know that the way I was eating helped me lose weight last time, so I am motivated to do it. I love that this challenge is not at all about winning anything. It is purely about working to change your habits. It is with flexibility to adapt these habits that I will be successful.
Language Challenge
Another challenge this week was welcoming three new students into my classroom and getting them acclimated to our routines and procedures. Two of these students are refugees and neither of them speaks English. One of the girls can sometimes understand quite simple directions but the other girl does not understand any English. They both do an excellent job of watching and following the other students. The challenge for me will be to differentiate my lessons to help these girls get as much out of school as they can get. The biggest celebration with this is the way my students have accepted these girls and are working hard to help them (almost to a fault). I will need to be very flexible in the designing of lessons to be able to accommodate for the needs of my learners.
Flexible Seating Challenge
The last celebration that I have this week is the arrival of the supplies that were on my DonorsChoose project. They got here very fast! I was able to introduce the wobble chairs and balance boards in my classroom. The lessons I am learning from implementing flexible seating in my classroom are material for another post, but suffice it to say that there is a steep learning curve here and it is full of challenges. The biggest issue this week for me as a teacher was the discovery that these new chairs and a couple of the balance boards can spin. Having furniture in the classroom that allows for movement is not for the faint of heart. I went over safety with my students and they are following safety rules, but I am constantly coming up with more as we go. For instance, “Don’t spin while you are trying to read” will be introduced this week. It drove me crazy to see a girl read a page, spin a 360, read a page, spin a 360 over and over again during independent reading. It was not distracting to her or any of her classmates, but it distracted me big time. We are happy to have the new furniture and I am happy to allow the students to work where they are most productive, but we will need a little bit of time to get used to it. Here’s the celebration of flexibility on my part. I am learning to let go and let this new experience teach me.
What do you have to celebrate this week? I would love to hear from you in the comments!
Letting that new experience teach you must be key, I agree, Andrea, but what a challenge with ‘spinny’ chairs. My office chair is a delight of the granddaughters, even after countless visits! Best wishes in the health challenge. It’s great that it is only a “win” for your health! And best to you with those new students. My heart goes out to them in coming everyday but understanding so little of the language. Wow! I had one student long ago like that, & I used a lot of sketches to help. Have a great weekend!
I admire you dedication to a life challenge like that. I really need to stop saying I need to do it and just do it! I can’t imagine being in a place where I did not speak the language. Thank goodness your students have been so welcoming! I am sure that makes it so much easier for all of you! Have a great weeks!
It’s often helpful to evaluate what we’re doing in life. The Whole Life Challenge seems like a great way to reflect on your daily choices. What a challenge to have two students at the same time who are English learners. It will be a learning experience for all of your students and for you too.
Oh, those new chairs. We have a new addition to our school and I stopped by a friend’s classroom on Friday when I subbed. The chairs in her classroom are driving her crazy! Best of luck with your new students, so glad your students are so supportive and good luck with the Whole Life Challenge too!